The Daoist Tradition in China’s Strategic Culture: Understanding the Pragmatic Dimensions of China’s Behavioural Trends in the International System

Abstract

China’s strategic culture has mostly been understood from the competing prisms of Confucianism and realpolitik traditions. However, there is a need to go beyond this binary approach to explore the more nuanced civilisational basis of China’s strategic thinking. It is in this context that the role of Daoism becomes significant in understanding China’s behavioural patterns. The Daoist strategic tradition has been found to be a highly cogent system based on five key pillars—strategic rationalism, strategic aloofness, strategic optimisation, strategic restraint and strategic flexibility. These aspects have been found reflected in various key instances of China’s strategic practice, demonstrating its relevance for understanding China’s strategic culture.